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COTTON COLLEGE STATE UNIVERSITY
DEPARTMENT OF PHILOSOPHY
Philosophy Postgraduate Syllabus
DISTRIBUTION OF PAPERS/CREDITS (L+T+P format)
Semester I
Paper Code Paper Name Credits PHL 701C Western Metaphysics 3 + 1
+ 0 PHL 702C Indian Metaphysics 3 + 1 + 0 PHL 703C Introduction to
Modern Logic 3 + 1 + 0 PHL 704C Ethical Theories 3 + 1 + 0 An
Elective Paper to be decided by the Department
from the list given in this syllabus 2 + 1 + 0
Semester II
Paper Code Paper Name Credits PHL 801C Western Epistemology 3 +
1 + 0 PHL 802C Indian Epistemology and Logic 3 + 1 + 0 PHL 803C
Contemporary Political philosophy 3 + 1 + 0 PHL 804C Analytic
Philosophy 3 + 1 + 0 An Elective Paper to be decided by the
Department
from the list given in this syllabus 2 + 1 + 0
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Semester III
Paper Code Paper Name Credits PHL 901C Problems in Indian Moral
and Social Philosophy 3 + 1 + 0 PHL 902C Asian Philosophy 3 + 1 + 0
PHL 903C Phenomenology and Existentialism 3 + 1 + 0 PHL 904C
Philosophy of Religion 3 + 1 + 0 An Elective Paper to be decided by
the Department
from the list given in this syllabus 2 + 1 + 0
Semester - IV
Paper Code Paper Name Credits PHL 1001C Contemporary Indian
thought 3 + 1 + 0 PHL 1002C Recent Trends in Continental Philosophy
3 + 1 + 0 PHL 1003C Feminist Philosophy 3 + 1 + 0 PHL 1004C
Research Paper 0 + 2 + 2 An Elective Paper to be decided by the
Department
from the list given in this syllabus 2 + 1 + 0
Elective Papers
Paper Code Paper Name Credits PHL 1201E Practical Ethics 2 + 1 +
0 PHL 1202E Philosophy of Arts 2 + 1 + 0 PHL 1203E Philosophy of
Science 2 + 1 + 0 PHL 1204E Sankara Vedanta 2 + 1 + 0 PHL 1205E
Gandhian Thought 2 + 1 + 0
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SEMESTER-I Paper: PHL 701C
WESTERN METAPHYSICS
Credits: 4 (3+1+0)
Unit I- Ancient Greek Metaphysics: Aristotles critique of Platos
theory of ideas; his solution hylomorphism; his teleological
account of causality. Unit II Substance: Cartesian dualism;
Spinozist monism; Leibnizian monadism.
Unit III Causality: Humean attack on causality.
Unit IV Idealism: Berkeleian subjective idealism and Hegelian
absolute idealism. Reading List :
1. Cooper, David E., ed. 200. Metaphysics: The Classic Readings.
Malden, MA: Wiley- Blackwell.
2. Taylor, Richard. 1991. Metaphysics, Series: Foundations of
Philosophy. New Delhi: Prentice Hall.
3. Copleston, Frederick. 1993. A History of Philosophy, 11
Volumes. New York: Image. (relevant portions).
4. Zalta, Edward N. ed. Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy,
URL: http://plato.stanford.edu/ (relevant articles)
SEMESTER-I Paper: PHL 702C
INDIAN METAPHYSICS
Credits: 4 (3+1+0)
Unit I Theory of causation: Satkaryavada of Samkhya;
Asatkaryavada/ Arambhavada of Nyaya; Pratityasamutpadavada of
Buddhism; Vivartavada of Advaita; Brahma-parinamavada of
Visistadvaita.
Unit II Theory of the physical world: World as manifestation or
evolution of Prakrti in Samkhya; World as a product of atoms in
Vaisesika; World as vyavaharika satta in Advaita; World as
inseparable from Brahman in Visistadvaita (aprtaksidhi).
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Unit III Theories of reality (Sat): Vaisesika view of padarthas;
Sat as eternal reality in Samkhya and Vedanta; Sat as eternal and
non-eternal in Jainism; Sat as momentary in Buddhism; Sat in
Carvaka materialism.
Unit IV Theory of human essence (Jiva/Atman): In the
Samkhya-Yoga; in Advaita; In Visistadvaita; In Buddhism; In
Jainism; In Carvaka. Reading List :
1. Radhakrishnan, Sarvepalli. 1967. A Sourcebook in Indian
Philosophy. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press
2. Phillips, Stephen H. 1997. Classical Indian Metaphysics. New
Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass. 3. Hiriyana, M. 1993. Outlines of
Indian Philosophy. New Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass. 4. Dasgupta,
Surendranath. 2000. History of Indian Philosophy, 5 Volumes Set.
New Delhi:
Motilal Bnarsidass, (relevant portions) 5. Potter, Karl H. 2011.
The Encyclopedia of Indian Philosophies, Currently in 19 Volumes.
New
Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass, (relevant portions).
SEMESTER-I Paper: PHL 703C
INTRODUCTION TO MODERN LOGIC
Credits: 4 (3+1+0)
Unit I Propositional logic: Logic and the nature of argument;
Truth and validity; Symbolic logic; Truth functions; Techniques of
symbolization; Proof construction; Shorter truth table
technique.
Unit II Quantification theory: Singular and general
propositions; Techniques of symbolization; Quantification rules;
Proof construction; Logical truth involving quantifiers
Unit III The logic of relations: Symbolizing relations;
Arguments involving relations; Attributes of relations; Identity
and definite description.
Unit IV Introduction to set theory: Definition of sets; Basic
operations; Venn diagrams; Relations, Binary relations, Equivalence
relations; Ordering relations; Operations on relations; Functions;
Operations on functions. Reading List :
1. Jacquette, Dale, ed. 2001. Philosophy of Logic: An Anthology.
Oxford: Blackwell. 2. Copi, Irving M., and Carl Cohen. Introduction
to Logic. 11th Edition. Harlow, UK: Pearson. 3. Copi, Irving M.
2009. Symbolic Logic. Fifth Edition. New Delhi: Prentice Hall
India. 4. Klenk, Virginia. 2007. Understanding Symbolic Logic.
Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson.
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5. Suppes, Patrick. 1999. Introduction to Logic, Series: Dover
Books on Mathematics. Mineola, NY: Dover Publications.
6. Zalta, Edward N. ed. Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy,
URL: http://plato.stanford.edu/ (relevant articles).
SEMESTER-I Paper: PHL 704C
ETHICAL THEORIES
Credits: 4 (3+1+0) Unit I Virtue ethics: Aristotles virtue
ethics (Eudaimonism) .
Unit II Utilitarian ethics: Its hedonism, consequentialism and
maximization scheme; Mills improved utilitarianism;Problems with
utilitarianism; Contemporary improvements:Rule utilitarianism and
act utilitarianism, and their problems.
Unit III Deontological ethics: Kants notion of theoretical and
practical reason; ethics as practical reason; Categorical
imperatives; Principle of humanity and the autonomous moral
subject.
Unit IV Metaethics: Moral realism; Moral naturalism and
non-naturalism; Freewill and moral responsibility; Moral relativism
and moral nihilism. Reading List :
1. Sher, George. 2012. Ethics: Essential Readings in Moral
Theory. New York: Routledge. Deigh, John. 2010. An Introduction to
Ethics. Series name: Cambridge Introductions to
Philosophy. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. 2. Pojman,
Louis. 2005. How should we Live?: An Introduction to Ethics.
Belmont, CA:
Wordsworth. 3. Miller, Alexander. 2013. Contemporary Metaethics:
An Introduction. Cambridge: Polity
Press. 4. Darwall, Stephen. 1997. Philosophical Ethics, Series:
Dimensions of Philosophy. Boulder,
CO: Westview Press 5. Follesdal, Andreas, and Reidar Maliks,
eds. 2014. Kantian Theory and Human Rights, Series:
Routledge Innovations in Political Theory. New York: Routledge.
6. Copp, David, ed. 2006. The Oxford Handbook of Ethical Theory.
Oxford: Oxford University
Press. 7. Russell, Daniel C. 2013. The Cambridge Companion to
Virtue Ethics. Cambridge:
Cambridge University Press. 8. Copleston, Frederick. 1993. A
History of Philosophy, 11 Volumes. New York: Image.
(relevant portions). 9. Zalta, Edward N. ed. Stanford
Encyclopedia of Philosophy, URL: http://plato.stanford.edu/
(relevant articles)
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SEMESTER-II Paper: PHL 801C
WESTERN EPISTEMOLOGY
Credits: 4 (3+1+0) Unit I Knowledge as justified true belief;
The Gettier problem; Responses to it
Unit II Rationalism-empiricism debate: Cartesian method of doubt
and modern epistemological foundationalism; Spinozas threefold
division of knowledge; Leibniz on knowledge; Rationalist notion of
innate ideas and Lockes critique of it; Lockes account of knowledge
acquisition; Berkeleys idealistic empiricism; Humes skeptical
empiricism; Relations of ideas and matters of fact.
Unit III Kants critical idealism: Kants Copernican revolution;
Notion of the transcendental; Structure of sensibility, imagination
and understanding; Division of judgments and possibility of
synthetic a priori judgments; Transcendental idealism.
Unit IV Correspondence and coherence theories of truth. Reading
List :
1. Cahn, Steven M., ed. 2012. Classics of Western Philosophy,
Eighth Edition. Indianapolis, IN: Hackett Publishing
2. Pojman, Louis P. 2003. Theory of Knowledge: Classic and
Contemporary Readings, Third Edition. Andover, UK: Cengage
Learning.
3. Rescher, Nicholas. 2003. Epistemology: An Introduction to the
Theory of Knowledge, Series: SUNY Series in Philosophy. Albany, NY:
State University of New York
4. Crumley II, Jack S. 2009. An Introduction to Epistemology,
Second Edition, Series: Broadview Guides to Philosophy.
Peterborough, ON: Broadview Press.
5. Copleston, Frederick. 1993. A History of Philosophy, 11
Volumes. New York: Image. (relevant portions).
6. Zalta, Edward N. ed. Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy,
URL: http://plato.stanford.edu/ (relevant articles).
SEMESTER-II Paper: PHL 802C
INDIAN EPISTEMOLOGY AND LOGIC
Credits: 4 (3+1+0)
Unit I The close relation between logic, epistemology and
metaphysics in Indian philosophy; The necessity to refute all other
systems in order to establish ones own system of
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philosophy; The Indian method of purvapaksa and sidhanta;
Anviksiki and anumiti
Unit II Theories of error (Kyativada): Carvakas asat-kyativada;
Yogacara Buddhists atma-kyativada; Prabhakara mimamsakas
akyativada; Naiyayikas anyatha-kyativada; Advaitins
anirvacaniya-kyativada; Madhvas Abhinava anyata-khyativada; Bhatta
mimamsakas viparitakyativada; Samkyas sadasadkyativada;
Visistadvaitins satkyativada; Debate about the status of dream
cognition
Unit III Valid means of knowledge (pramana): pratyaksa, anumana,
sabda, upamana, arthapatti, anupalabdi; The special status of sabda
pramana; Svatahpramanyavada and paratahpramanyavada; Valid (prama)
and invalid (aprama) cognition;
Unit IV Anumana pramana: Definition, constituents and types of
anumana in Nyaya and Buddhism; inductive elements in Indian logic:
vyaptigrahopaya, samanya laksana pratyasatti, tarka, upadhi Reading
List :
1. Prasad, Jwala. 1987. History of Indian Epistemology, Third
Edition. New Delhi: Munshiram Manoharlal.
2. Barlingay, Surendra Sheodas. 1965. A Modern Introduction to
Indian Logic. New Delhi: National Publishing House.
3. Matilal, Bimal Krishna. 1992. Perception: An Essay on
Classical Indian Theories of Knowledge, Series: Clarendon
Paperbacks. New York: Oxford University Press.
4. Matilala, Bimal Krishna. 1998. The Character of Logic in
India, eds. Jonardon Ganeri and Heeraman Tiwari, Series: SUNY
Series in Indian Thought, Texts and Studies. Albany, NY: State
University of New York Press.
5. Datta, D. M. 1997. The Six Ways of Knowing: A Critical Study
of the Advaita Theory of Knowledge. New Delhi: Motilal
Banarsidass.
6. Rao, Srinivasa. 1998. Perceptual Error: The Indian Theories,
Series: Monographs of the Society for Asian and Comparative
Philosophy, No. 15, Book 16. Honolulu, HI: University of Hawaii
Press.
7. Dasgupta, Surendranath. 2000. History of Indian Philosophy, 5
Volumes Set. New Delhi: Motilal Bnarsidass, (relevant
portions).
8. Potter, Karl H. 2011. The Encyclopedia of Indian
Philosophies, Currently in 19 Volumes. New Delhi: Motilal
Banarsidass, (relevant portions).
SEMESTER-II Paper: PHL 803C
CONTEMPORARY POLITICAL PHILOSOPHY
Credits: 4 (3+1+0)
Unit I Introduction: Greek political thought; The social
contract tradition of political thought:Hobbes, Locke, Rousseau;
The utilitarian tradition of political thought: Bentham,Mill; Marxs
radical challenge of liberalism
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Unit II Contemporary liberalism: Rawlsian liberal egalitarian
justice theory; Nozicks libertarian critique of liberalism;
Unit III Contemporary secularism: Western secularism; Indian
secularism Reading List :
1. Bailey, Andrew, and others. 2012. The Broadview Anthology of
Social and Political Thought: Essential Readings. New York:
Broadway Press.
2. Pettit, Philip, and Robert E. Goodin, eds. 1997. Contemporary
Political Philosophy: An Anthology. Malden, MA:
Wiley-Blackwell.
3. Kymlicka, Will. 2002. Contemporary Political Philosophy: An
Introduction, Second Edition. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
4. Christman, John. 2002. Social and Political Philosophy: A
Contemporary Introduction, Series: Contemporary Introductions to
Philosophy. London: Routledge.
5. Bhargava, Rajeev, and Ashok Acharya. 2012. Political Theory:
An Introduction. New Delhi: Pearson Education India, (relevant
articles).
6. Gaus, Gerald F., and Fred DAgostino, eds. 2013. The Routledge
Companion to Social and Political Philosophy, Series: Routledge
Philosophy Companions. New York: Routledge, (relevant
articles).
7. Goodin, Robert E., Phillip Pettit and Thomas W. Pogge, eds.
2012. A Companion to Contemporary Political Philosophy, Series
name: Blackwell Companions to Philosophy. Malden, MA:
Wiley-Blackwell, (relevant articles).
8. Zalta, Edward N. ed. Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy,
URL: http://plato.stanford.edu/ (relevant articles).
SEMESTER-II Paper: PHL 804C
ANALYTIC PHILOSOPHY
Credits: 4 (3+1+0)
Unit I The Ideal Language Phase I: The linguistic turn of Moore,
Russell and Frege; Ideal language and logical atomism of Russell
and Wittgenstein; Theory of descriptions of Frege and Russell;
Wittgensteins picture theory of meaning in the Tractatus
Unit II The Ideal Language Phase II: Vienna circles logical
positivism: Verification and falsification; critique of logical
positivism
Unit III The Ordinary Language Phase: Later Wittgensteins
notions of family resemblance, form of life and the use theory of
meaning; Austins speech act theory.
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Reading List :
1. Martinich, A. P., and David Sosa, eds. 2011. Analytic
Philosophy: An Anthology, Second Edition. Malden, MA:
Wiley-Blackwell.
2. Glock, Hans-Johann, ed. 1997. The Rise of Analytic
Philosophy. Oxford: Blackwell. 3. Glock, Hans-Johann. 2008. What is
Analytic Philosophy?. Cambridge: Cambridge University
Press. 4. Schwartz, Stephen P. 2012. A Brief History of Analytic
Philosophy: From Russell to Rawls.
Malden, MA: Wiley-Blackwell. 5. Stroll, Avrum. 2000.
Twentieth-Century Analytic Philosophy. New York: Columbia
University
Press. 6. Mandik, Pete. 2014. This is Philosophy of Mind: An
Introduction. Malden, MA: Wiley-
Blackwell. 7. Zalta, Edward N. ed. Stanford Encyclopedia of
Philosophy, URL: http://plato.stanford.edu/
(relevant articles).
SEMESTER-III Paper: PHL 901C
PROBLEMS IN INDIAN MORAL AND SOCIAL PHILOSOPHY
Credits: 4 (3+1+0)
Unit I Dharma: Indian metaphysics of human existence in terms of
karma-dharma-moksa; The place of virtuous life within this
metaphysical scheme in Advaita Vedanta, Buddhism and Jainism;The
ideal of niskamakarma; Is Indian ethics fatalistic?
Unit II Varnsrama Dharma: The social scheme of varnasrama
dharma; The purusartha scheme of gradation of human goods within
the varnasrama dharma social scheme; Varna dharma and sadharan
dharma
Unit III Caste and Untouchability: Untouchability and the ethics
of purity; Critique of the varnasrama scheme; The ability/aptitude
account of varnasrama defended by Swami Vivekananda and Mahatma
Gandhi; Is the ability account defendable in terms of the modern
social ethos?; Dr. Ambedkars attack against the varnasrama social
scheme; Daya Krishnas criticism of the purusartha scheme;
Possibility of Indian ethics independent of the
varnasrama-dharma-pursusartha scheme; Social egalitarianism in the
Bhakti movement and practical Vedanta. Reading List :
1. Prasad, Rajendra. 2008. History of Science, Philosophy and
Culture in Indian Civilization, Vol. XII, Part 1: A
Conceptual-Analytic Study of Classical Indian Philosophy of Morals.
New Delhi: Centre for Studies in Civilizations.
2. Prasad, Rajendra, ed. 2009. History of Science, Philosophy
and Culture in Indian Civilization, Vol. XII, Part 2: A
Conceptual-Analytic Study of Classical Indian Philosophy of Morals.
New
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Delhi: Centre for Studies in Civilizations. 3. Perrett, Roy W.
1998. Hindu Ethics: A Philosophical Study. Honolulu, HI: University
of
Hawaii Press. 4. Billimoria, Purusottama, Joseph Prabhu, and
Renuka M. Sharma. 2007. Indian Ethics:
Classical Traditions and Contemporary Challenges, Vol. 1.
Aldershot, UK: Ashgate Publishing.
5. Ambedkar, B. R. 2014. Annihilation of Caste: The Annotated
Critical Edition. New Delhi: Navyana.
6. Sharma, Urmila, and S. K. Sharma. 1996. Indian Political
Thought. New Delhi: Atlantic Publishers.
7. Coward, Harold. 2003. Gandhi, Ambedker and Untouchability. In
Indian Critiques of Gandhi, ed. Harold Coward, 41-66. Albany, NY:
State University of New York Press.
8. Dasgupta, Surendranath. 2000. History of Indian Philosophy, 5
Volumes Set. New Delhi: Motilal Bnarsidass, (relevant
portions).
9. Potter, Karl H. 2011. The Encyclopedia of Indian
Philosophies, Currently in 19 Volumes. New Delhi: Motilal
Banarsidass, (relevant portions).
SEMESTER-III Paper: PHL 902C
ASIAN PHILOSOPHY
Credits: 4 (3+1+0)
Unit I Zoroastrianism: Ahura Mazda and Ahriman
Unit II Taoism: The concept of Tao
Unit III Cofucianism: Moral teachings of the Analects
Unit IV Islam: Basic philosophical teachings, Sufism
Unit V Shintoism: The concept of Kami
Reading List:
1. Boyce, M.: Zoroastrians, Their Religious Beliefs and
Practices, London: Routledge and Kegan Paul, 1987
2. Chan, W: A Sourcebook of Chinese Philosophy, Princeton:
Princeton University Press, 1963 3. Fakhry, M: A History of Islamic
Philosophy, London, Longmans, 1983 4. Nakamura, H: A History of the
Development of Japanese Thought, 2 Volumes, Tokyo:
Kokusai Bunka Shinkokai, 1967
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SEMESTER III Paper: PHL 903C
PHENOMENOLOGY AND EXISTENTIALISM
(Credits: 3+1+0) Unit I Husserls descriptive science of
phenomenology; Structure of intentionality; Epoche or
phenomenological reduction; Constitution of things; Time, space,
self (transcendental ego), others (intersubjectivity)
Unit II Existentialism as foreshadowed in Kierkegaards notions
of subjectivity as truth and the leap of faith, and Nietzsches
notions of the death of God, nihilism and the overman; Heidegger
Existential phenomenology: hermeneutics and ontology; Everydayness:
Structures of Being-in-the-world and disclosedness; Authenticity:
Being-towards-death, anticipatory resoluteness and temporality
Unit III Sartre Existentialism; Being-for-itself and
being-in-itself; Being and nothingness; Bad faith; Authenticity and
freedom characteristics; perception; freedom Reading List :
1. Moran, Dermot, and Timothy Mooney, eds. 2002. The
Phenomenology Reader. London: Routledge.
2. Kauffman, Walter, ed. 1975. Existentialism from Dostoevsky to
Sartre, Revised and Expanded Edition. New York: Penguin.
3. Moran, Dermot. 2000. Introduction to Phenomenology. London:
Routledge. 4. Lewis, Michael, and Tanja Staehler. 2010.
Phenomenology: An Introduction. London:
Continuum. 5. Barrett, William. 1990. The Irrational Man: A
Study in Existential Philosophy. New York:
Anchor Books. 6. Oaklander, Nathan L. 1995. Existential
Philosophy: An Introduction, Second Edition. Upper
Saddle River, NJ: Pearson. 7. Zalta, Edward N. ed. Stanford
Encyclopedia of Philosophy, URL: http://plato.stanford.edu/
(relevant articles).
SEMESTER III Paper: PHL 904C
PHILOSOPHY OF RELIGION
(Credits: 3+1+0) Unit I- Nature of Religion: Understanding the
concept of religion and the philosophy of religion; Different
religious theologies like polytheism, animism, monotheism, monism,
pantheism, panentheism, deism; Religious pluralism and religious
absolutism; Science
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Unit II- Nature of the Ultimate: Arguments for and against the
existence of God: Indian and western; Isvara and Brahman
distinction; Revelation and faith; The concept of apauriseya, sabda
and its authority; Theories of creation: Indian and Western Unit
III- Nature of Religious language: Unit IV- Human Destiny:
Immortality of the soul; Karma and reincarnation; God-human
relation; Problem of evil (theodicy) Reading List:
1. Eshleman, Andrew, ed. 2008. Readings in the Philosophy of
Religion: East Meets West. Malden, MA: Blackwell.
2. Clark, Kelly James, ed. 2008. Readings in the Philosophy of
Religion, Second Edition. New York: Broadview Press.
3. Zagzebski, Linda, and Timothy D. Miller, eds. Readings in
Philosophy of Religion: Ancient to Contemporary. Malden, MA:
Wiley-Blackwell.
4. Hick, John H. 1991. Philosophy of Religion, Fourth Edition.
New Delhi: Prentice Hall. 5. Murray, Michael J., and Michael C.
Rea. 2008. An Introduction to the Philosophy of Religion.
Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. 6. Ramamurty, A. 2002.
Indian Philosophy of Religion, Series: Hyderabad Studies in
Philosophy. Delhi: D. K. Printworld. 7. Perrett, R. W., ed.
1989. Indian Philosophy of religion, Series: Studies in Philosophy
and
Religion. New York: Springer. 8. Taliaferro, Charles, Paul
Draper and Phillip L. Quinn, eds. 2010. A Companion to
Philosophy
of Religion, Series: Blackwell Companions to Philosophy. Malden,
MA: Wiley-Blackwell. 9. Copleston, Frederick. 1993. A History of
Philosophy, 11 Volumes. New York: Image. 10. Zalta, Edward N. ed.
Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy, URL:
http://plato.stanford.edu/
(relevant articles).
SEMESTER IV Paper: PHL 1001C
CONTEMPORARY INDIAN THOUGHT
(Credits: 3+1+0)
Unit I- Vivekananda Practical Vedanta and universal religion;
Nationalism; Aurobindo reality as sat-cit-ananda, three phases of
evolution of the Absolute, mind and super-mind, integral yoga Unit
II- Tagore The surplus in humans; philosophy of art; religion and
artist;
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Unit III- K. C. Bhattacharya The Absolute and Its alternative
forms, subject as freedom, Unit IV- Radhakrishnan God and the
Absolute; the idealist view of life Unit V- M. K. Gandhi: Truth;
Satyagraha; Swaraj; Sarvodaya; Trusteeship; Critique of modern
civilization; Inter-religious dialogue and tolerance; Nation
Reading List:
1. Radhakrishnan, S., and Muirhead, J. H. 1936. Contemporary
Indian Philosophy. London: Macmillan (readings).
2. Guha, Ramachandra. ed. 2011. The Makers of Modern India.
Cambridge, MA: Belknap Press (readings).
3. Raju, P. T. 2008. Idealistic Thought of India. Abingdon:
Routledge. 4. Lal, Basant Kumar. 2010. Contemporary Indian
Philosophy. New Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass. 5. Singh, Mahendra
Prasad, and Himanshu Roy, eds. 2011. Indian Political Thought:
Themes
and Thinkers. Noida: Dorling Kindersley (India).
SEMESTER IV Paper: PHL 1002C
RECENT TRENDS IN CONTINENTAL PHILOSOPHY
(Credits: 3+1+0)
Unit I- Hermeneutics: Gadamer prejudice, tradition,
understanding and fusion of horizon; Ricoeur the narrative view of
self and identity; Discourse, agency, action, time, memory, history
Unit II- Critical Theory: Its emancipatory vision and differences
from traditional Marxism; Horkheimers critique of ideology; Adornos
negative dialectics; Marcuses one-dimensional society; Habermas and
universal pragmatics, critique and practical action Unit III-
Postmodernism: Lyotards definition of postmodernism;
Poststructuralism and postmodernism; Differences with modernity;
Foucaults notion of power-knowledge and the death of the subject;
Derridas critique of the metaphysics of presence, and his notion of
difference; Habermass critique of postmodernism Reading List:
1. McNeill, William, and Karen S. Feldman, eds. 1998.
Continental Philosophy: An Anthology. Malden, MA: Blackwell.
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2. West, David. 2010. Continental Philosophy: An Introduction.
Cambridge: Polity Press. 3. Porter, Stanley E., and Jason Robinson.
2011. Hermeneutics: An Introduction to Interpretive
Theory. Cambridge: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing. 4. Malpas, Simon,
and Paul Wake, eds. 2006. The Routledge Companion to Critical
Theory.
Abingdon: Routledge. 5. Sarup, Madan. 1993. An Introductory
Guide to Post-Structuralism, Second Edition. Athens,
GA: Georgia University Press. 6. Zalta, Edward N. ed. Stanford
Encyclopedia of Philosophy, URL: http://plato.stanford.edu/
(relevant articles).
SEMESTER IV Paper: PHL 1003C
FEMINIST PHILOSOPHY
(Credits: 3+1+0)
Unit I- Introduction to Feminist philosophy; Sex, gender,
sexuality, sexual difference Unit II- Feminist ontology:
Essentialism and constructionism; Critique of representation;
Feminist theory of self-identity Unit III- Feminist epistemology:
Method of feminist epistemology; Critique of knowledge; Critique of
philosophical knowledge; Feminism and science Unit IV- Feminist
ethics and politics: Critique of traditional ethics; Care ethics;
Public-private distinction; Politics and the private Reading
List:
1. Bailey, Alison, and Chuomo Chris, eds. 2008. The Feminist
Philosophy Reader. New York: MacGraw-Hill.
2. Garry, Ann, and Marilyn Pearsall, eds. 1996. Women,
Knowledge, and Reality: Explorations in Feminist Philosophy. New
York: Routledge (readings)
3. Fricker, Miranda, and Jennifer Hornsby, eds. 2000. The
Cambridge Companion to Feminism in Philosophy. Cambridge: Cambridge
University Press.
4. Schott, Robin May. 2003. Discovering Feminist Philosophy:
Knowledge, Ethics, Politics. Lanham, MA: Rowman and
Littlefield.
5. Kourany, Janet A. 1998. Philosophy in a Feminist Voice:
Critiques and Reconstructions. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University
Press.
6. Stone, Alison. 2007. An Introduction to Feminist Philosophy.
Cambridge: Polity Press. 7. Jagger, Alison M., and Iris Marion
Young, eds. 2000. A Companion to Feminist Philosophy,
Series: Blackwell Companion to Philosophy. Malden, MA:
Blackwell. 8. Donovan, Josephine. 2012. Feminist Theory: The
Intellectual Traditions, Fourth Edition.
London: Continuum.
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9. Rich, Jennifer. 2007. Modern Feminist Theory: An
Introduction. Tirril, UK: Humanities E- Books.
10. Stanley, Liz, and Sue Wise. 1993. Breaking Out Again:
Feminist Ontology and Epistemology, Second Edition. London:
ROutledge & Kegan Paul.
11. Tanesini, Alessandra. 1999. An Introduction to Feminist
Epistemologies. Malden, MA: Blackwell.
12. Lindemann, Hilde. 2005. An Invitation to Feminist Ethics.
New York: MacGraw-Hill. 13. Bryson, Valerie. 2003. Feminist
Political Theory: An Introduction, Second Edition. New York:
Palgrave Macmillan. 14. Zalta, Edward N. ed. Stanford
Encyclopedia of Philosophy, URL: http://plato.stanford.edu/
(relevant articles).
SEMESTER IV Paper: PHL 1004C
RESEARCH PAPER
(Credits: 0+2+2)
1. 8 hrs of work per week for the whole semester 2. A research
paper on a suitable philosophical theme of about 10,000 words
composed in
a proper philosophy paper format 3. Appropriate referencing
style is to be followed (preferably, the Chicago Manuel of
Style
Notes-Bibliography format; a ready reference is available here:
https://owl.english.purdue.edu/media/pdf/1300991022_717.pdf
ELECTIVE PAPERS
Elective Paper: PHL 1201E
PRACTICAL ETHICS (Credits: 2+1+0)
Unit I- Life: Suicide; Abortion; Euthanasia; Capital punishment;
War Unit II- Equality: Intrinsic worth of nature; Animal rights;
Rights of children; Rights of the disabled; Economic rights (of the
disadvantaged); Racial and caste discrimination; Ethics of
affirmative action (reservation) Unit III- Other debates: The gene
revolution and cloning; Nationalism, rights of foreigners and right
to secession; Corruption and whistleblowing; Terrorism
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Reading List:
1. Singer, Peter, ed. 1986. Applied Ethics, Series: Oxford
Readings in Philosophy. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
2. Camp, Julie C. Van, Jeffrey Olen, and Vincent Barry, eds.
2013. Applying Ethics: A Text with Readings, Eleventh Edition.
Stamford, CT: Wadsworth Cengage Learning.
3. May, Larry, Kai Wong, and Jill Delgston. 2010. Applied
Ethics: A Multicultural Approach. Upper Saddle River, NJ:
Pearson.
4. Frey, R. G., and Christopher Heath Wellman, eds. 2005. A
Companion to Applied Ethics, Series: Blackwell Companions to
Philosophy. Malden, MA: Blackwell.
5. Almond, Brenda, ed. 1995. Introducing Applied Ethics. Oxford:
Blackwell. 6. Lafollette, Hugh, ed. 2003. The Oxford Handbook of
Practical Ethics. Oxford: Oxford
University Press. 7. Singer, Peter. 2011. Practical Ethics,
Third Edition. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. 8. Zalta,
Edward N. ed. Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy, URL:
http://plato.stanford.edu/
(relevant articles).
Elective Paper: PHL 1202E PHILOSOPHY OF ART
(Credits: 2+1+0)
Unit I- Platonic and Aristotelian theories of art Unit II-
Aesthetic philosophies of Kant, Hegel, Schopenhauer, Nietzsche Unit
III- Aesthetics of Wittgenstein, Heidegger and Sartre Reading
List:
1. Cahn, Steve, Aaron Meskin, eds. 2008. Aesthetics: A
Comprehensive Anthology. Malden, MA: Blackwell.
2. Cazeaux, Clive ed. The Continental Aesthetics Reader.
Abingdon: Routledge. 3. Lamargue, Peter, and Stein Haugom Olsen.
2003. Aesthetics and the Philosophy of Art: The
Analytics Tradition An Anthology. Malden, MA: Blackwell. 4.
Wood, Robert E. 1999. Placing Aesthetics: Reflections on
Philosophic Tradition. Athens, OH:
Ohio University Press. 5. Beardsley, Monroe C. 1975. Aesthetics
from Classical Greece to the Present: A Short History.
Tuscaloosa, AL: University of Alabama Press. 6. Lewis, Peter.
2004. Wittgenstein, Aesthetics, and Philosophy. Aldershot, UK:
Ashgate
Publishing. 7. Copleston, Frederick. 1993. A History of
Philosophy, 11 Volumes. New York: Image.
(relevant portions). 8. Zalta, Edward N. ed. Stanford
Encyclopedia of Philosophy, URL: http://plato.stanford.edu/
(relevant articles).
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Elective Paper: PHL 1203E PHILOSOPHY OF SCIENCE
(Credits: 2+1+0)
Unit I- Introduction: Nature of philosophy of science; Inductive
probability Unit II- Poppers Philosophy of Science: Falsifiability;
Accumulation of human knowledge; Probability, knowledge and
verisimilitude Unit III- Kuhns philosophy of science: The idea of
the development of science; the concept of paradigm;
Incommensurability; Paradigm shift; Kuhn and the social sciences.
Reading List:
1. Popper, Karl. 2002. The Logic of Scientific Discovery. New
York: Routledge. 2. Kuhn, Thomas S. 2012. The Structure of
Scientific Revolutions, Fiftieth Anniversary Edition.
Chicago, IL: The Chicago University Press. 3. Gattei, Stefano.
2009. Karl Poppers Philosophy of Science: Rationality without
Foundations.
New York: Routledge. 4. Hoyningen-Guene, Paul. 1993.
Reconstructing Scientific Revolutions: Thoms S. Kuhns 5. Philosophy
of Science, trans. Alex Levine. Chicago, IL: The Chicago University
Press. 6. Fuller, Steve. 2004. Kuhn Vs. Popper: The Struggle for
the Soul of Science, Series: 7. Revolutions in Science. New York:
Columbia University Press. 8. Rosenberg, Alex. 2012. Philosophy of
Science: A Contemporary Introduction. New York:
Routledge. 9. Zalta, Edward N. ed. Stanford Encyclopedia of
Philosophy, URL: http://plato.stanford.edu/
(relevant articles).
Elective Paper: PHL 1204E
SANKARA VEDANTA (Credits: 2+1+0)
Unit I- The three-tier structure of consciousness of the system
of Advaita: pratibhasika, vyavaharika, paramarthika; The doctrine
of Brahmans absolute reality and the relative unreality of the
world and jiva; Establishing the system through the criticism of
rival systems like Samkhya, Vaisesika, Buddhism, Jainism and
Mimamsa Unit II- The World of Maya: Nirguna Brahman; Maya; Adhyasa;
Avarana sakti and viksepasakti; Rejection of Samkhyas prakrti as
the (jada) cause of the universe; Cetana-Brahman as the material
and efficient cause of the universe; theory of causation Unit III-
Nature of the jiva; Jivanmukti;; The higher and the lower teachings
of the Prasthanatrayi; The relative importance of reason and Sruti;
Jnana as the means to
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Reading List :
1. Sankara. 1965. Brahma Sutra Bhasya, trans. Swami
Gambhirananda. Kolkata: Advaita Ashrama.
2. Rangaswami, Sudhakshina, ed. 2012. The Roots of Vedanta:
Selections from Sankaras Writings. New Delhi: Penguin.
3. Sundaram, P. K., 1981. Advaita and Other Systems. Madras:
University of Madras. 4. Pande, Govind Chandra. 1998. Life and
Thought of Sankaracarya. New Delhi: Motilal
Banarsidass. 5. Mahadevan, T. M. P. 2011. The Philosophy of
Advaita. Delhi: Bharatiya Kala Prakashan. 6. Isayeva, Natalia.
1992. Shankara and Indian Philosophy, Series: SUNY Series in
Religious
Studies. Albany, NY: State University of New York Press. 7.
Dasgupta, Surendranath. 2000. History of Indian Philosophy, 5
Volumes Set. New Delhi:
Motilal Banarsidass, (relevant portions). 8. Potter, Karl H.
2011. The Encyclopedia of Indian Philosophies, Currently in 19
Volumes.
New Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass, (relevant portions).
Elective Paper: PHL 1205E GANDHIAN THOUGHT
(Credits: 2+1+0) Unit I- Gandhis ideas of knowledge, truth and
love; Understanding of culture and tradition; Understanding of the
relationship between self, world and God. Unit II- Moral
foundations of good life; Swaraj, satyagraha and ahimsa;
Brahmacarya and sexuality; Religion, spiritual practice and
service; Means-end relationship; Critique of modern civilization.
Unit III- Community and fellowship; The good society; Statelessness
(anarchism), rural republic; trusteeship, sarvodaya, panchayati
raj; Idea of India; Hindu-Muslim unity; Religious Reading List
:
1. Johnson, Richard L., , ed. 2006. Gandhis Experiments with
Truth: Essential Writings by and about Mahatma Gandhi. Oxford:
Lexington Books.
2. Parel, Anthony J., ed. 1997. Gandhi: Hind Swaraj and Other
Writings. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
3. Bhikhu, Parekh. 1991. Gandhis Political Philosophy. New
Delhi: Macmillan. 4. Allen, Doughlas, ed. 2008. The Philosophy of
Mahatma Gandhi for the Twenty-First Century.
Oxford: Lexington Books. 5. Parel, Anthony J., 2007. Gandhis
Philosophy and the Quest for Harmony. Cambridge:
Cambridge University Press. 6. Parekh, Bhikhu. 2000.
Colonialism, Tradition and Reform: An Analysis of Gandhis
Political
Discourse. New Delhi: Sage. 7. Richards, Glyn. 1995. The
Philosophy of Gandhi: A Study of his Basic Ideas. Abingdon:
Routledge.